That closure was lifted on October 15 after none of the shellfish samples collected tested positive for the toxin, which can cause amnesic shellfish poisoning in humans.

But on Wednesday, October 19, the DEM detected domoic acid in a batch of shellfish collected from the lower Sakonnet River, specifically Harvester Tagging Area 5C. That area is now closed to shellfish harvesting; the area is north of Sakonnet Point Light, south of an east-west line running one-quarter mile south of the pipeline south of Black Point, and east of a line running from Flint Point to Taggert’s Ferry in Middletown.